The purification of women after childbirth.
The law of wemens purification that beare children.
1And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:E il Signore parlò a Mosè, e disse:AND our Lord spake to Moyses, saying:Locutusque est Dominus ad Moysen, dicens: 2Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: If a woman having received seed shall bear a man child, she shall be unclean seven days, according to the days of separation of her flowers.Parla a' figliuoli d'Israele, e dirai loro: La donna, la quale rimasa incinta partorirà un figliuolo maschio, sarà immonda per sette giorni, come ne' mensuali suoi corsi.Speake to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: A woman, if receauing seede she beare a man child, shal be vncleane seuen daies, according to the daies of the separation of her floures.Loquere filiis Israël, et dices ad eos: Mulier, si suscepto semine pepererit masculum, immunda erit septem diebus juxta dies separationis menstruæ. 3And on the eighth day the infant shall be circumcised:E l'ottavo giorno si circonciderà il bambino.And the eight day the litle infant shal be circumcised:Et die octavo circumcidetur infantulus: 4But she shall remain three and thirty days in the blood of her purification. She shall touch no holy thing: neither shall she enter into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification, be fulfilled.Ed ella trenta tre giorni starà a purificarsi dal suo sangue. Non toccherà nulla di santo, e non entrerà nel santuario, fino a tanto che sien compiuti i giorni di sua purificazione.but her self shal remaine three & thirtie daies in the bloud of her purification: No holie thing shal she touch, neither shal she enter into the Sanctuarie, vntil the daies of her purification be expired.ipsa vero triginta tribus diebus manebit in sanguine purificationis suæ. Omne sanctum non tanget, nec ingredietur in sanctuarium, donec impleantur dies purificationis suæ. 5But if she shall bear a maid child, she shall be unclean two weeks, according to the custom of her monthly courses. And she shall remain in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.Che se avrà partorito una bambina, ella sarà immonda per due settimane, come nei mensuali suoi corsi, e per sessanta sei giorni starà a purificarsi dal suo sangue.But if she beare a woman child, she shal be vncleane two weekes, according to the custome of the fluxe of her flowers, and sixtie six daies she shal remaine in the bloud of her purification.Sin autem feminam pepererit, immunda erit duabus hebdomadibus juxta ritum fluxus menstrui, et sexaginta sex diebus manebit in sanguine purificationis suæ.
6And when the days of her purification are expired, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, a lamb of a year old for a holocaust, and a young pigeon or a turtle for sin: and shall deliver them to the priest.E compiuti che sieno i giorni della sua purificazione pel figliuolo, ovver pella figlia, porterà all'ingresso del tabernacolo del testimonio un agnello dell'anno per l'olocausto, e un colombino, o una tortora per il peccato, e darà queste cose al sacerdote,And when the daies of her purification are expired, for a sonne, or for a daughter, she shal bring a lambe of a yeare old for an holocaust, and a young pigeon or a turtle for sinne, to the dore of the tabernacle of testimonie, and shal deliuer them to the priest,Cumque expleti fuerint dies purificationis suæ, pro filio sive pro filia, deferet agnum anniculum in holocaustum, et pullum columbæ sive turturem pro peccato, ad ostium tabernaculi testimonii, et tradet sacerdoti, 7Who shall offer them before the Lord, and shall pray for her: and so she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that beareth a man child or a maid child.Il quale le offerirà dinanzi al Signore, e farà orazione per lei; e così sarà ella purificata dal flusso del sangue suo. Quest'è la legge per colei, che partorisce un maschio, o una femmina.who shal offer them before our Lord, and shal pray for her, and so she shal be cleansed from the fluxe of her bloud. this is the lawe for her that beareth a man child or woman child.qui offeret illa coram Domino, et orabit pro ea, et sic mundabitur a profluvio sanguinis sui: ista est lex parientis masculum aut feminam. 8And if her hand find not sufficiency, and she is not able to offer a lamb, she shall take two turtles, or two young pigeons, one for a holocaust, and another for sin: and the priest shall pray for her, and so she shall be cleansed.Che se ella non ha il modo di poter offerire l'agnello, prenderà due tortore, ovvero due colombini, uno per l'olocausto, e l'altro per il peccato: e il sacerdote farà orazione per lei, e così sarà purificata.And if her hand finde not, neither is able to offer a lambe, she shal take two turtles, or two young pigeons, one for an holocaust, and an other for sinne. and the priest shal pray for her, and so she shal be cleansed.Quod si non invenerit manus ejus, nec potuerit offerre agnum, sumet duos turtures vel duos pullos columbarum, unum in holocaustum, et alterum pro peccato: orabitque pro ea sacerdos, et sic mundabitur.
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Year of the World 2514.
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Suarez
Child. By this manner of expressing himself, Moses excludes the blessed Virgin, as the ancient fathers and the moderns generally remark. She conceived without concupiscence, and was subject to none of the usual inconveniences of child-birth. (Suarez)
Menochius
So that whether this law was instituted to expiate the former, or to purify the latter, she was not included. All other mothers were separated, at least seven days, and longer if their state required it; (Calmet) during which time, they were treated like those mentioned, chap 15:19. After that period they were allowed to manage their affairs, as usual, but not to touch any thing sacred, nor suffer their husbands to approach them, till the expiration of 33 days more, ver. 4. (Menochius)
Grotius
Euripides blames Diana for keeping such women at a distance from her altar, while she delighted in human sacrifices. (Iphigen. 5:380.) Censorinus says, "Praegnans ante diem quadragesimum non prodit in Fanum; et post partum pleraeque graviores sunt, nec sanguinem interdum continent." (Grotius)
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Haydock
Eighth. Nothing but the child's health could retard the day, (Calmet) unless the parents were under the necessity of taking a journey, as they were in the desert, etc. (Haydock)
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Calmet
Sanctuary, or court of the tabernacle, where the women had probably a place apart. (Calmet)
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Days. In all 80, double the time required for a male child, as they infirmities of women continue so much longer when they bear a female. (Vales. sac. Philos. c. xviii.) Hippocrates allows forty-two days for the one, and thirty for the other.
Calmet
Purification. Some copies of the Septuagint read, in her pure, others, in her impure blood; which Origen attempts to reconcile by observing, that she is deemed less impure during the last thirty-three or sixty-six days, than in the preceding ones. (Calmet)
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Lamb, to thank God for her happy delivery.
Haydock
Sin, or uncleanness, which was esteemed a legal offence. Perhaps this sacrifice was also designed to expiate the sins she might have fallen into, (Menochius) since she was last able to offer one; and likewise the original sin of her female offspring. That of males was effaced by circumcision. (Haydock)
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Blood, which has caused her legal uncleanness.
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Menochius
Lamb. This was the case of the blessed Virgin Mary: (Luke 2:24,); so poor was she! (Menochius)
Calmet
It seems difficult to conceive, how all the women of Palestine could present themselves before the tabernacle, 40 or 80 days after the childbirth. Perhaps the law regarded those only who lived in the neighbourhood. The priests explained to the rest what they had to do, whether they might defer bringing their offspring to the next great festival, or they might send it by another hand. We read that Anna came to the temple after she had weaned Samuel, 1 Kings 1:21. (Calmet)
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The most pure virgin mother, was not subiect to this law For she conceiued not by the seede of man, yet obserued the custome of other wemen Luc. 2. as Christ also would be baptized by S. Iohn Baptist. Mat. 3. to geue example of humilitie. S. Cyril. li. 8. in Leuit. S Bernard Ser. 3. de Purific.
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St Jerome † AD 420 The Perpetual Virginity of Blessed Mary 10
10. If you are so contentious, your own thoughts shall now prove your master. You must not allow any time to intervene between delivery and intercourse. You must not say,
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St Jerome † AD 420 Against the Pelagians 1.28
xii. 6 . Offerings for women after childbirth.
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For "having conceived seed," in Hebrew it is תזריע tazria, which Oleaster, Cajetan here, and Jansenius in Concord. Evangel. cap. X, translate as "if she made seed," that is, offspring, that is, if she gave birth. For tazria is in the hiphil active; and seed is taken throughout Scripture for offspring. But that our Interpreter translated it better as "having conceived seed" is evident first from what follows, "and bear"; for from this it is clear that תזריע tazria which precedes should be translated, if she conceived seed, or became pregnant, and formed a fetus: otherwise the same thing would be said, and it would be a tautology to say: If she gave birth, and bore. Second, because the Septuagint agrees with our Interpreter, who translate ἐὰν σπερματισθῇ, if she conceived seed; and the Chaldean, if she became pregnant; and the Hebrews, Lyra and Vatablus, who translates, if having conceived seed she bore a male. Third, because the Hebrew tazria properly signifies, if she made seed and emitted it, in the natural and ordinary manner, that is, if having received the seed of her husband, she also emitted her own and conceived. For a woman in conception receiving the seed of her husband also emits her own into the womb, "which immediately is retained by the virile seed, coagulates, and is strengthened, and thus grows, and finally rises into members; and thus the embryo, or infant, is conceived," say the Hebrews and Vatablus, who add: "From the virile seed are formed the nerves and bones, from the woman's seed are produced the flesh, blood and hair of the infant." But physicians deny this last point, and assert that all members are formed mixedly from the seed of both woman and man.
The Blessed Virgin and This Law Hence it was formerly the common opinion of the Fathers and Doctors, with one exception, the Abulensian, that the Blessed Virgin giving birth to Christ was not comprehended by this law, because she herself, not emitting her seed from the received seed of man, but from the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit's providence forming the body of Christ from her most pure blood, conceived Christ, as if by a singular providence of the Holy Spirit wishing to except this Virgin, it came to pass that Moses in this place did not use the word נהרה hara, which means to conceive absolutely; but tazria, which means to emit one's seed from the received seed of man, and thus to conceive. Thus teach Origen, Rupert and Ralph here, and Eusebius, Aemilius, St. Ildefonsus, St. Eligius, Lawrence Justinian, sermon On the Purification of the Blessed Virgin; St. Bernard, sermon 3 on the same; Euthymius, Theophylactus, Anselm, Bede on Luke II, Chrysostom, homily On the Meeting of the Lord; but most gravely St. Cyril of Alexandria, book II On Faith to the Queens, at the beginning, confirms the same against the Arians: "It is clear," he says, "into what impiety the Arians fell, who assert that the Mother of God Mary had need of those sacrifices which were customary to be offered for women in childbed according to the law." Whence also our heretics Melanchthon, Artopaeus, Sarcerius and others, otherwise hostile to the Blessed Virgin, confess the same, as Peter Canisius shows, book IV of Mariology, chapter XII. In a similar manner from Exodus XIII, 2, it can be shown from the Fathers that Christ was not comprehended by that law of the firstborn, because Christ did not open the womb of his mother, but was born from the Virgin with it closed.
Objection from the Flow of Blood You will say: This law of purification is established for women in childbed on account of the flow of blood which naturally happens to them in childbirth, as is said in verse 4; on account of this indeed women in childbed were reckoned unclean, and had to be purified; but this flow was also in the Blessed Virgin: therefore she too was comprehended by this law, and ought to have been purified. Thus the Abulensian. I answer that the minor premise is false, and contrary to the common opinion of the Fathers, who assert that the childbirth of the Blessed Virgin was most pure, and free from all filth and flow of blood. Thus expressly Sophronius in the Sixth Council, session II: "The childbirth," he says, "of the Virgin was incorruptible, because it was accomplished without flow of blood, or any similar suffering." Thus also Epiphanius, book III Against Heresies, at the end, St. Cyprian, sermon On the Nativity of Christ, St. Augustine, book On Five Heresies, heresy 3: "Foolishly," he says, "whence filth in the Virgin mother, where there is no intercourse with a man as father? whence filth in her, who neither in conceiving experienced lust, nor in giving birth suffered pain?" Thus also the Council of Trullo of more than 200 Fathers, Canon 79, defines that the childbirth of the Virgin was without the afterbirth (though others translate it, without pain). The Holy Spirit therefore wished to indicate the excellence of the Virgin here, so that her humility and obedience might shine forth more brightly, by which, although not subject to this law, she nevertheless fulfilled it, as one of the other unclean women in childbed. "Be," says St. Bernard, in sermon 3 On the Purification, "O Virgin, among women as one of them; for your son too is in the number of children."
This Law of Purification Is Now Abolished Note: This law of purification is now abolished, as are the other ceremonial laws of the Old Testament; our women in childbed therefore are not bound by it, and can without sin enter the temple to give thanks immediately after childbirth, as Innocent III answered, chapter unique, On Purification after Childbirth: nevertheless on account of veneration and imitation of the Blessed Virgin, many abstain from entering the church for 40 days after childbirth, says Ralph, book VIII, chapter VI, at the beginning. Whence Innocent also adds: "If however from devotion they should wish to abstain from the church for some time, we do not disapprove of their devotion."
Objection from the Mass of the Ethiopians You will say: In the Mass of the Ethiopians it is said in the blessing of the woman in childbed: "You, O Lord, taught Moses the pure constitution, etc.: we beseech you therefore for your handmaid who kept your constitution:" therefore this constitution of Moses also binds Christian women. I answer: "Who kept your constitution," understand this as to the ceremony of purification itself, but not as to the reason and obligation of the law, or constitution itself; for our women in childbed conform themselves to this constitution, not because they are bound by it, but willingly and from their own devotion already mentioned.
Tropology: Purification a Symbol of Penance Tropologically, this purification was a symbol of penance, by which we recover the purity of soul. Most excellently Gregory of Nazianzus, Oration 6: Nothing, he says, does God, who is pure, hold in such high esteem as purity or purification. And Barlaam, when dying, commends to his disciple Josaphat the purity of soul, as a treasure of great value, as testified by John of Damascus. Hence Christ prepared for us a bath in His own blood to cleanse the filth of our crimes. For, as St. John says, Apocalypse I: "He washed us from our sins in His blood." And Paul to Titus II: "He gave Himself for our sins, that He might redeem us from all iniquity and cleanse to Himself a people acceptable." Wherefore Tertullian, in the book On Penance, teaches that one must do penance immediately, and shows by the example of brute beasts that the soul wounded by sin must be healed and purified at once. "For the stag, when pierced through, knowing that it must expel the iron and the irreversible delays of its wound, knows to heal itself with dittany. The swallow, if it has blinded its young, knows to restore their sight again from its own celandine. Does the sinner, knowing the exomologesis instituted by the Lord for his restoration, pass it by?" The same is found in Pacianus, Exhortation to Penance; whence Tertullian adds: "Do you, sinner, seize upon penance thus, embrace it thus, as a shipwrecked man grasps the faith of some plank: this will lift you up, submerged in the waves of sins, and will carry you into the harbor of divine mercy." St. Ephrem, in the book On the Day of Judgment: "Compunction," he says, "is the health of the soul, it is the illumination of the mind; compunction acquires for us the remission of offenses." St. Jerome in the epitaph of Fabiola, speaking of her contrition: "What sins," he says, "does this weeping not purge? What inveterate stains do these lamentations not wash away?" And further: "O blessed penance, which draws to itself the eyes of God!" St. Ambrose, book II On Penance: "Most evidently," he says, "by the preaching of the Lord it is commanded that even to those guilty of the most wicked crimes, if they do penance from their whole heart and with manifest confession of sin, the grace of the heavenly Sacrament is to be poured out again." St. Chrysostom, sermon On Penance: "O penance," he says, "you who remit sin through the mercy of God, and reopen paradise, who heal the contrite man and gladden the sorrowful, who recall life from death, restore the state, renew honor, give confidence, restore strength, and pour forth more abundant grace! O penance, what new thing shall I say of you? All things bound you loose, all things loosed you bind again, all things adverse you soften, all things broken you heal, all things confused you clarify, all things despaired of you animate. O penance more brilliant than gold, more splendid than the sun, whom sin does not overcome, nor defection surpass, nor despair destroy! Penance rejects avarice, abhors luxury, etc. O penance, mother of mercy and teacher of virtues! Great are your works, by which you release the guilty and restore the offenders, raise up the fallen, recreate the despairing. Through you Christ suddenly snatched the thief to the kingdom, through you David after his crime, blessed again received the Holy Spirit," etc. Again St. Ambrose, book II On Penance: "More easily," he says, "have I found those who preserved innocence than those who performed penance fittingly." If you ask, What then, Ambrose, do you call fitting penance? he answers in the same place: "The world must be renounced, sleep itself must be indulged less than nature demands, one must be interrupted by groans, broken by sighs, separated by prayers: one must live so that we die to this vital use, man must deny himself to himself, and be wholly changed, as the fable tells of a certain young man who, after illicit loves, departed abroad, and returning after his love was forgotten, met again his former beloved: when she, wondering that he did not greet her, thought he did not recognize her, and meeting him again said: I am she; he answered: But I am not I. Whence the Lord well says: Whoever wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me." Ambrose speaks of exact and perfect penance, which few perform: for the common penance, which especially with the Sacrament of Penance approaching, suffices for the remission of sins and for salvation, many embrace and perform.
She Shall Be Unclean Seven Days SHE SHALL BE UNCLEAN SEVEN DAYS,—so that it is not permitted for anyone, not even her husband, to associate with her for seven days: then for the remaining 33 days, which remain up to 40, she was indeed barred from the sanctuary, but nevertheless it was permitted to speak with her, eat with her and associate with her (not, however, to have marital relations, as Abulensis says: for she was in the condition of one menstruating): for this reason in these seven days she was said to be separated, and these were days of separation; the remaining 33, however, were days of purification. ACCORDING TO THE DAYS OF THE SEPARATION OF HER MENSTRUATION,—that is to say, In these seven days she shall be unclean in the same manner as a menstruating woman, and in the same way she ought to conduct herself as separated and unclean, as a menstruating woman, concerning whom chapter XV, verse 19.
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AND SHE HERSELF SHALL REMAIN THIRTY-THREE DAYS IN THE BLOOD OF HER PURIFICATION,—that is, in the blood by which she is continually purified, as Jansenius says in chapter X of the Harmony of the Gospels. Secondly, by hypallage, as if to say, She shall remain in the purification of her blood, until namely she is purified from the flow of blood, concerning which more in verse 5. A similar hypallage occurs in Exodus XII, 11, Jeremiah XI, 19, and elsewhere.
Tropology: To Remain in the Blood of Purification Tropologically, to remain in the blood of purification is to endure the hardship of mortality, into which we have fallen by sinning, through which however we are cleansed from those things which we have committed: so that on the fortieth day of resurrection, we may stand before the Lord in the heavenly temple immortal and glorious. Thus Radulphus.
Blood and Filth of Childbirth: A Symbol of Chastity Again symbolically and properly, this blood and filth of childbirth were the effects, penalty and signs of lust, which the woman had in conjugal union and conception. For what is conceived with shameful love is brought forth with pain, is purified with foulness. Thus it has been ordained by the just and eternal law of God. God therefore wished by this purification to signify that the chastity of marriage does not approach celibacy, but is unclean; and that spouses in marriage need purification. Rightly does Cassian say, Conferences XXI, chapter XXXIII: "In the law," he says, "in which the rights of marriages are preserved, although unbridled lust is restrained, it is nonetheless bound to one woman alone. Hence the stings of carnal desire cannot fail to be vigorous, and it is difficult that fire, to which fuel is even eagerly supplied, should be so confined within fixed boundaries that it does not also burn beyond, whatever it touches." Full purity therefore is in chastity and continence, whose brightness, beauty and praises St. Cyprian thus depicts in the book On the Good of Modesty: "Modesty," he says, "is the honor of bodies, the ornament of morals, the sanctity of sexes, the bond of shame, the fountain of chastity, the peace of the home, the head of concord. Modesty is not solicitous to please except itself. Modesty is always reverent, while it is the mother of innocence. Modesty is always adorned by shame alone, well conscious then of its beauty, if it displeases the wicked. Modesty seeks no ornaments, it is its own beauty. This commends us to the Lord, connects us to Christ; blessed itself, and making blessed those among whom it deigns to dwell: whom it can never accuse, nor those who do not possess it: venerable even to its enemies, while they admire it much more, those who cannot overcome it."
Praises of Chastity St. Ephrem, sermon On Chastity: "O chastity, mother of love, and the way of angelic life! O chastity, who art pure of heart and sweet of speech and cheerful of countenance! O chastity, who makest men like unto angels! O chastity, who hast so exalted the friend of God in a foreign land that he redeemed even those who had bought him! O chastity, gift of God, of benignity, of discipline and knowledge's penalty! O chastity, a tranquil harbor, established in the highest peace and security," etc. And the author of the book On the Singularity of Clerics among St. Cyprian (that this book is not Cyprian's is evident from the style): "Chastity, he says, is an unconquerable bulwark of holiness, and a strong repulsion of infamy: the firmness of fortitude, and the weakness of wanton lasciviousness: the protection of probity, and the destruction of impropriety: the victory of the soul, and the prey of the body: the abundance of glories, and the sterility of crimes: the bridesmaid of holiness, and the rejection of turpitude: the proof of sincerity, and the abolition of scandals: the exercise of continence, and the complete evacuation of lust: the secure peace of virtues, and the restless defeat of wars: the summit of purity, and the prison of lust: the harbor of honesty, and the shipwreck of ignominy, a place of safety: the mother of virginity, and the enemy of uncleanness: the breastplate of modesty, and the spoil of shame: the destruction of corruption, the wall of rigor, and the destruction of vulgarity: the sword of severity, the conqueror and slayer of dissolution: the armor of strength, and the disarming of the weak: the dignity of integrity, and the addiction of fornication: the pinnacle of brightness, and the precipice of disgrace: the will of good works, and the affliction of vices: the refreshment of chastity, and the penalty of wantonness: the acquisition of triumphs, and the loss of crimes: the rest of salvation, and the exile of perdition: the life of the spirit, and the death of the flesh: the state of angelic quality, and the funeral of human substance. Those who hold fast to this restrain all obscenity, and with its fetters they bind the heels of raging lust." St. Ephrem, sermon On Chastity: "O chastity, bridle of the eyes, who transferest the whole body from darkness to light! O chastity, who chastenest the flesh and bringest it into servitude, and penetratest most swiftly to heavenly things! O chastity, who gladdest the heart of him who possesseth thee, and joinest wings to the soul for heavenly things! O chastity, who bringest forth spiritual joy and takest away sorrow! O chastity, who diminishest passions and freest the mind from disturbances! O chastity, who illuminatest the just and pourest darkness upon the devil! O chastity, who drivest away sloth and bringest patience! O chastity, spiritual chariot, bearing thy possessor on high! O chastity, who like a rose in the midst of soul and body flourishest, and fillest the whole house with the fragrance of odor! O chastity, forerunner and cohabitant of the Holy Spirit!" That certain illustrious spouses might attain this purity, they preserved continence in marriage by mutual consent. Thus did St. Ammon with his wife, Euphraxia, sprung from the family of the Emperor Theodosius, with her husband Antigenus, Anastasius with Theognia, Eucharistus with Mary, Magna with her husband, Olympia with Nebridius, as is evident from their Lives. I have cited more in 1 Cor. cap. vii, vers. 6.
Chastity a Gift of God Wherefore this so great gift of chastity is obtained by no one without a special grace of God and much prayer. Witness is St. Augustine concerning himself, lib. X Confess. xix: "All my hope, he says, is in nothing but thy very great mercy. O love who ever burnest and art never extinguished, charity, my God, inflame me. Thou commandest continence; give what thou commandest, and command what thou wilt." Hence also God is wont to protect virgins and the chaste, so that like amber they are inviolable from fire. For fire findeth in them no filth or uncleanness which it might burn. Thus St. Cunegundis, wife of the Emperor Henry, to prove her virginity to her husband, walked with bare and unharmed feet upon burning iron. Thus Theognia, by the command of St. Basil, receiving burning coals in her bosom, carried them with unharmed bosom, because she preserved continence in marriage with her husband Anastasius: witness is Amphilochius in the Life of St. Basil. Thus also that Abbot who converted Porphyria the harlot, when in suspicion-
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So that with the prior 14 days added, during which she was wholly separated, there are made 80 days of purification, which are double the purification in the bearing of a male: for in that case only 40 days were appointed, vers. 4.
Why Double the Days for a Woman? You will ask, why in the birth of a male are only 40 days of purification established, but in the birth of a female 80 days? Isychius and Cyril respond, in book XV On Adoration, and Maldonatus in Luke 11:22, that so many days are appropriately established according to the natural formation of male and female: for the male is formed and perfectly organized in 40 days, and therefore is animated on the 40th day. For as soon as the fetus is perfectly formed, it is animated, as physicians teach: but the female is formed and organized over 80 days, and this on account of the weakness of heat and seminal power. Now this formation of male and female takes place from menstrual blood: hence the pregnant woman does not suffer menstruation at that time, by which according to the law in Numbers chapter 15:19, she would have been unclean, and therefore after birth she is reckoned unclean for as many days as she retained menstruation, and formed the fetus from menstrual blood, because she shed this menstruation through childbirth. But the moral cause is, because for as many days as she formed the offspring, she transmitted original sin to it in a manner; hence she ought to be purified for as many days. But physicians contradict this opinion: for Levinus Lemnius, in the book On the Hidden Miracles of Nature, chapter 11, teaches that the formation of the male is completed sometimes on day 30, sometimes 35, sometimes 40, sometimes 45; but that of the female now 35, now 40, now 45, now 50. But Hippocrates, in the book On the Nature of the Fetus, number 10, teaches that the male is formed at the longest in 30 days; the female at the longest in 42 days: and he proves this from the purging, which after the birth of a male lasts 30 days, after that of a female 42 days, at the longest. Hence secondly, others think that what is considered here is not the time of formation or animation of the fetus, but the motion by which the fetus shows itself in the womb: for, as Aristotle teaches, in book VII of the History of Animals, chapter III, males for the most part begin to move themselves around the 40th day on the right side of the womb, females truly around the 90th day, and that on the left side of the matrix. But neither does this correspond entirely to this law and time, nor is it certain or universally true: for Hippocrates, in the book On Nourishment, and others teach that neither the formation, nor the motion, nor the birth of man has a simple and common time established for all, but a varied and manifold one. Add that this purging is to be considered not so much from formation or motion, as from the uncleanness of childbirth. Hence thirdly, Francisco Valesius responds more probably, physician of Philip II king of Spain, in the book On Sacred Philosophy, chapter 18: "It should be noted," he says, "that a twofold evacuation from the womb takes place after childbirth: the first of blood flowing copiously, as is accustomed to happen to women each month; the second of other excretions, flowing gradually with little blood. Both are shorter for her who bore a male; for since women are more humid and more excrement-prone than men, it is necessary that their principles at birth be more humid than those of men. Whence experience confirms that not males, but females are conceived by those women who are either by nature, or whom it happened to be by accident more excrement-prone at conception; they will therefore need a more prolonged purging. And although Hippocrates, in the book On Generation, thinks the longest purging of her who bore a male to be 30 days; of her who bore a female 42, nevertheless from this authority of Holy Scripture and law, it is gathered that the first evacuation in males can take place in seven days, in females in fourteen; the second in males can extend to 40 days, in females to 80." Thus far Valesius. For this is hinted at by the words of Moses saying: "Sixty-six days shall she remain in the blood of her purification," although this passage does not fully convince; for it could be said with Vatablus, that she who bears a female is reckoned unclean for 80 days, and is commanded to remain in the blood of her purification, not because blood flows for so long after childbirth, but because legally by this law she is held unclean for so long, on account of the flow of blood which she suffered for seven days from childbirth, and therefore for 33 subsequent days she is still reckoned to be in the flow of her blood, and its legal purification, which she is commanded to perform by this law. I say therefore: The proper and genuine cause of this ordinance and disparity is the will and good pleasure of God, who established 40 days of purification in the birth of a male, 80 in that of a female; and this appropriately according to nature, on account namely of the greater flow of humors in the childbirth of a female, and the corruption of blood, and the greater weakness of the woman in labor: for, as Theodoret teaches, women are accustomed to labor more heavily while bearing a female than while bearing a male. To this join the congruence of Valesius already mentioned, namely that the flow of blood in the birth of a male can last to the fortieth day, in that of a female to 80, or rather that these limits are never exceeded, so that these limits define, not so much the maximum or most that is so, but the most and maximum that is not, as Physicists speak.
Tropology: Birth of Male and Female Tropologically, a woman bearing a male is a perfect soul, cultivating perfect virtues; this one is purged in forty days, that is, by the penance of this life before death, so that immediately after it she may fly to heaven; but bearing a female, that is, one who is more remiss and does not strive for the heights of virtues, this one after this forty days of penance will undergo another in Purgatory. Thus Radulphus.
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The question here is, to what should "it" be referred, whether for a son or for a daughter, whether "she shall offer" a lamb in holocaust refers to the following verse, or to the preceding days of purification. For there were more days of purification for the birth of a daughter than of a son. From this question depends and must be resolved another question, whether the sacrifices prescribed here were offered for the offspring, or only for the mother in childbirth, or for both mother and offspring together? There are various opinions of interpreters and Doctors here.
For Whom Were These Sacrifices Offered? Many hold that these sacrifices were offered in holocaust and for sin, both of the mother and of the offspring. Thus St. Augustine, Question XL, Hugo, Rupertus here, Bede, and Euthymius in Luke II, Barradius, book X, chapters IV, V, VI, and St. Eligius, homily On the Purification; for although by the sacrament of circumcision the infant was purged from original sin, nevertheless he was still considered legally unclean with the mother: for he was still as it were one with the mother. Whence with the mother by this sacrifice he was expiated and more sanctified, and by this legal ceremony was consecrated to God. This opinion is favored by what the Church sings in Responses 2 and 3 of the first nocturn in the feast of the Purification: "They offered for him (the boy Jesus) a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons." But more probably Jansenius, chapter x of the Concord., Toletus and Maldonatus in Luke II, 22, and others, hold that the woman in childbirth offered these for the purification not of the offspring, but of herself alone; for this is expressly said in verse 7: "The priest shall offer her before the Lord, and shall pray for her (not for him, namely the boy), and thus she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood." Again, in the last verse: "And the priest shall pray for her, and thus she shall be cleansed." Wherefore what is sung in the feast of the Purification: "They offered for him," understand indirectly and concomitantly, as if to say, They offered for her childbirth, or because the Blessed Mary bore him. The offspring therefore was not purged from original sin by this sacrifice, but by circumcision; then if it was firstborn, it was presented to the Lord, and redeemed for five shekels, as is evident from Numbers III, 47, compared with Exodus xiii, 13; which law of redemption of the firstborn offspring is different from this law of purification: for this concerns only the mother in childbirth. Whence in verse 7 it is said: "This is the law of her that beareth a male or a female." Hence it follows that "it" for a son or for a daughter should be referred, not to "shall offer," but to the days of purification, which were different in the birth of a daughter, namely eighty, and different in the birth of a son, namely forty, to be completed before the mother came to the temple, where she would expiate herself by the sacrifices prescribed here. This is more clearly signified by the Hebrew and the Septuagint.
She Shall Offer a Lamb of One Year Old in Holocaust That she may give thanks to God, because she has escaped the perils of childbirth, and that she may offer her offspring with the lamb in holocaust to God, who may bless it, and bestow upon it and preserve in it the innocence of the lamb.
And a Young Pigeon or a Turtledove for Sin Namely for the uncleanness and legal irregularity contracted in childbirth, to be taken away. For this uncleanness is called sin, namely legal sin; especially because it itself, born from original sin, clearly signifies our corrupted offspring propagated in Adam, as Isychius and St. Augustine say. Thus legal uncleanness contracted from leprosy or menstruation is called sin, chapter xiv, 12, and chapter xv, 30. Secondly, at the same time the woman in childbirth will also offer this for her own sins properly so called, if she has committed any during childbirth or otherwise.
The Symbolism of the Turtledove Appropriately for the married woman and the woman in childbirth a purificatory victim is prescribed, the turtledove or pigeon; for the turtledove mourning is a symbol of sorrow and penance. For, as the Poet says: Nor shall the turtledove cease to moan from the brazen elm. So let the penitent not cease to moan until she is purified. The voice therefore of the turtledove heard in our land is the voice of Mary Magdalene mourning. Again: "The Physiologists," says St. Jerome, book I Against Jovinian, "hand down that this is the nature of the turtledove, that if she loses her mate, she does not join herself to another; and let us understand that bigamy is also disapproved by many birds." Christ, however, does not disapprove of second marriages, but prefers to them widowhood and continence.
The Symbolism of the Pigeon The pigeon is a symbol of chastity and conjugal faith. For, as Pliny says, book X, chapter xxxiv: "Chastity is the first thing in pigeons, and adultery is unknown to neither; they do not violate the faith of their bed, and they keep a common home, they bear imperious males, and sometimes even unjust ones." So let chastity be first in the married, as in pigeons, let adultery be unknown to neither, let them keep the faith of marriage and a common home, love their children, and instruct them in the law of God; let the wife bear the authority of her husband, even if it be difficult.
Examples of Fidelity Among the Gentiles Such turtledoves and doves were also found among the Gentiles. Valeria, being asked why, after her husband Servius died, she was unwilling to marry again, said: "Because, although my Servius is dead to others, he lives with me and will live forever." Annia, flourishing in age and beauty, being warned by friends that, after her husband's death, she should take a second husband, both for the hope of offspring and for mutual love, replied: "I will by no means do this. For if I marry a good man, I do not wish thereafter to fear losing him; but if a bad one, what madness would seize me, that after the best I should admit such a one?" Martia, daughter of Cato, being asked why after her husband's death she was unwilling to marry another, replied: "Because I shall not easily find a man who wishes me more than my own interests;" and again: "A blessed and chaste matron, she said, marries but once." When she mourned her husband for a long time, being asked what day would be the last of her mourning, she replied: "The same as that of my life." Rightly Propertius, Epigram 15: "Let doves joined in love be your example, the male and the female in the whole bond of marriage."
Histories Concerning Doves and Chastity Finally, St. Ambrose, book V of the Hexameron, chapter xix: "This bird, he says, the law of God chose as the gift of a chaste victim; when the Lord was presented, it was offered, because it is written in the law of the Lord, that they should give a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. For this is the true sacrifice of Christ, bodily chastity and spiritual grace: chastity is referred to the turtledove, grace to the dove." But hear a wonderful story, from which you will learn how much the dove is a symbol of chastity and piety. Gregory of Tours relates the matter, in his book On the Glory of Confessors, chapter xxxiv, and from him Baronius, in the year of Christ 480. There was a certain religious maiden of Averni, devoted to God, who, dwelling in the countryside, so that, removed from the urban crowd, she might more freely offer worthy sacrifices of praise to God, devoted herself daily to fasting and prayers. It came to pass, therefore, that when departing from this world, she was carried to the basilica of the town for burial. But when the bier was lifted and the body began to be carried along the way, a great flock of doves arrived and began to fly over her, and flying hither and thither followed where she was borne by those nearby. When she was brought into the basilica, the whole flock was seen to settle upon the roof of the building itself; and when she was buried, the doves flew up to heaven. Whence not undeservedly was she called Georgia, who so exercised her mind in the cultivation of spiritual culture, that having attained the sixtyfold fruit of virginity, departing from the world, she was honored with heavenly obsequies, as St. Gregory says. Ado relates, and from him Baronius, in the year of Christ 440, that the holy virgin and martyr Julia was flayed by the prince Felix, and finally crucified, and from her mouth a dove came forth and flew to heaven. St. Gregory, book IV of the Dialogues, chapter On Hope, writes thus of the Abbot Spes dying: "All the brothers saw a dove come forth from his mouth, which, the roof of the oratory being opened, departed and penetrated heaven. Wherefore the soul of that man is believed to have appeared in the form of a dove, so that almighty God might show from this very form how simply of heart that man had served him."
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Namely, the legal uncleanness which she contracted on account of the flow of blood of childbirth (this is metonymy or catachresis), so that afterwards she might enter the sanctuary, touch sacred things, offer other victims, and partake of them.
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In Hebrew, if her hand find not sufficiency for a lamb, that is, the price which suffices to buy a lamb (thus the Chaldean and the Septuagint), namely if she be poorer, she shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons: one for a holocaust, and the other for sin. Therefore rich women in childbed were bound to offer a lamb for a holocaust, and a turtledove or young pigeon for sin; but poor women only two turtledoves or two young pigeons: one for a holocaust, the other for sin, as the Blessed Virgin did, poor both in spirit and in means; although she did this, not because she was poor in spirit, namely because she loved poverty, as Abulensis wishes, but because she was truly poor in means and in need: for the law speaks of such as these.
A Moral Lesson: The Liberality of the Poor Morally, learn here what St. Gregory of Nazianzus says, in his Oration on Holy Baptism: "Nothing," he says, "is esteemed great before God which even a poor man cannot give." For God seeks not so much the gift as the affection of the giver; and, as St. Gregory says, homily 5 on the Gospel, "before the eyes of God a hand is never empty of a gift, if the treasury of the heart be filled with good will: for nothing is offered to God more richly than good will." Hence Gerson, Chancellor of Paris: "God," he says, "seeks not names, but adverbs," that is, "He does not regard what you do, but how," as St. Bernard says. Hence to Christ, before all others offering much, the widow pleased Him, offering only two small coins. If therefore you have much, give much; if little, give little, but with great and liberal willingness to give more, if you had it; thus the liberality of your heart will provoke the liberality of God toward you so that you may receive more: for God does not suffer Himself to be overcome in liberality. Leontius relates a wonderful thing concerning St. John the Almsgiver, Patriarch of Alexandria: "God," he says, "sends him many blessings, but does not allow anything which he does not immediately give to the poor. Many times in exultation some found him saying to God: Thus, thus, either you by sending, or I by distributing, we shall see who conquers. For it is clear that you are rich, O Lord, and the merciful one of our lives."
A Note on the Ceremony of Purification Note: With the purification of the woman in childbed, the infant was at the same time offered to God, if he was the firstborn, as appears in Luke ii, 22, and was redeemed with five shekels, as appears in Numbers xviii, 16. Moreover, it is probable that the mother was first purified, then offered her infant, as Francis Lucas holds in Luke II. Where note: the rite and order of each of these ceremonies was as follows. First, the woman in childbed came to the court of the unclean, and stood there; for she could not enter the court of the clean, being unclean before purification. Second, she offered turtledoves or a young pigeon for sin: it is probable that she was also sprinkled with the ashes of the red heifer; for that was as it were the lustral water in every purification. Third, she offered the infant to God, and redeemed him. Fourth, when all was completed, in thanksgiving she offered to God a lamb or a turtledove, or a young pigeon as a holocaust. But more on these matters in Luke II. The woman in childbed performed these last two (being now purified) while in the court of the clean. For there she offered the infant at the door of the tabernacle, and there from a distance she watched her holocaust, which was offered in the court of the priests; for between the court of the priests and that of the laity, there was only a wall, or partition three feet high, so that the laity from their court could see the victims and other things which took place in the court of the priests.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
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v. 9. « Loquere filiis Israel et dices ad eos : Mulier, si suscepto semine pepererit masculum, immunda, erit septem diebus tuxta dies separationis mens- Iruae », Hebr. : eiectionis mpuritatis suae, quo nomine 15,19 venit fluxus menstruus sanguinis. Post partum per aliquas hebdomadas emittitur liquor primum sanguineus (lochia rubrà), dein mucosus (lochia alba); primo igitur septiduo mulier impura habetur eodem ritu, atque cum sanguinem menstruum fundit. vy'$n vertendum est semen seu prolem producere, hine Syr. gravidam fieri. Sam. y winitem accipi potest ut hiphil non plene scriptum. Sed LXX Vulg. Targ. formam accepere sensu passivo semen suscipere. Etiamsi haec versio esset unice vera, non tamen sequeretur (Or. ; M. 12. 493), ex hoc textu effici, B. V. non faisse obligatam ad purificationem praestandam.
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v. 3 « Et die octavo circumcidetur infantulus » (Gen. 17,19).
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v. & « Ipsa vero triginta tribus diebus manebit » segregata, hinc « domi se continebit » (Vat.), « n sanguine purificationis suae » , qui ipse est impurus (LXX), et a quo ipsa purificari debet. In. altera hae periodo non adstringitur mulier ritui tam severo atque illa, quae fluxum patitur menstruum , sed. tantummodo sequentibus : « omne sanctum non tanget, nec ingredietur in sanctuarium, donec impleantur dies purificationis suae ». v. 5 « Sin autem feminam pepererit, immunda erit duabus hebdomadibus » — LXX pro duali aà*'v2v corrupte legebant à"2* ny3v. Crediderim, post illos quatuordecim dies puellae imponi consuevisse nomen — « tuzta ritum] fluxus menstrui », — non dicitur h. l. iwzta dies, quia dies revera sunt plures — « e£ sexaginta sex diebus manebit in sanguine purificationis suae ».
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v. 6 « Cumque ezpleti fuerint dies purificationis suae pro filto sive pro filia », ergo dies sive quadraginta sive octoginta , « deferet agnum anniculum in holocaustum, et pullum columbae sive turturem pro peccato , ad ostium tabernaculi testimonit » , ingressa atrium. (Aug.), « e£ tradet sacerdoti »,
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v. 1 « qui offeret illa coram Domino , et orabit pro ea, et sic mundabitur a profluvio sanguinis sui ». Puerperas nonnisi post ezpletos purgationis dies itineri ad. sanctuarium se dedisse, docemur Luc. 2,22. Ex 1 Reg. 1,92 videtur effici, puerperas quandoque victimas per maritos submisisse, non adisse sanctuarium ipsas, ob iustas rationes iter distulisse. « Ista est lez parientis masculum aut feminam ». Haec est pericopae subscriptio (Tost.). Sequens versus videtur post absolutam pericopen adiectus esse fortasse ab eodem, qui 5,7-13 scripsit : potuitque is esse aut ipse Moyses aut alius aliquis. v. 8 « Quods? non inve- Sacrificium pro peccato vi verborum, et magis etiam ubi immediate copulatur holocausto, utique designat sacrificium ritu sacrificiorum pro peccato oblatum (Bonfr.). Offerebatur istud sacrificium pro peccato non originali infantis (Aug.) : id enim in . pueris iam circumcisione tollebatur, ezpiabatque (v. 7) sacerdos non infantem sed matrem, eratque sacrificii effectus mundatio non infantis sed matris. Non offerebatur pro peccato matris in concubitu commisso (Lyr.), potuit quippe concubitus carere peccato morali, nullibi docemur eum habitum esse peccatum legale, propter illum mundandus erat maritus aeque atque uxor (Sylv.). Offerebatur pro peecatis matris universim spectatis, iisque legalibus. Uno autem peccato legali puerpera quaelibet affecta erat. Immunditiam sc. illam naturalem declaraverat Deus peccatum legale, similiter atque lepram. Ille legalis reatus tollebatur praestitis operibus a Deo praescriptis, quae erant holocaustum et sacrificium pro peccato. Quod sacrificium praeterea valebat pro aliis, quae forte adessent, matris peccatis legalibus. Proponitur nobis haec lex in Levitico tamquam wn : habet enim unam omnes eius partes complectentem clausulam 154,5^-57, ad instar 10,10 et clausulae 11,46 sq. efformatam. Sed eam e diversis coaluisse indubia produnt indicia. Habes 13,1-43 leprae humanae diagnosin, pericopen certo schemate totam descriptam, cui individue cohaeret 13 , -h6 tractatus de regulis ab eo, qui leprosus a sacerdote fuerit agnitus, observandis. Pericope 13,1-^6 clausula non concluditur. Ei aecedit 13,17-59 lex de lepra vestium , suam specialem v. 59 habens clau - sulam, estque secundum idem atque 13,1-543 schema exacta. Tradit ea tamen leprae vestium non diagnosin tantum, sed eiusdem etiam, si fieri possit, removendae methodum. Redit cap. 1^ ad lepram humanam, et v. 1-20 describit ritum eius, qui leprosus fuerat, ab immunditia legali liberandi. Ei aecrevit v. 21-32, qualem iam alibi (v. g. 12,8) notavimus, indulgentia pauperibus concessa, suam specialem v. 39 habens clausulam, quae v. 1-20 nequaquam respicit. Sequitur v. 33-53 tractatus de lepra domorum, specialem clausulam non habens: clausula vero v. 54-57, singulas totius legis Lev. 13 sq. partes complectitur, ideoque est clausula generalis. Tractatus ille item schema 13,1-53 imitatur. Haec evidenter non uno primitus calamo fuere scripta, sed e diversis in unum coacta. Crediderim unam primitus fuisse legem de lepra humana , tradentem eius diagnosin 13,1-43, regulas pro leprosis 13,5/4-46, eius qui leprosus fuerat legalem mundationem 15,1-20. Huic uti alias adiecta est, fortasse ab ipso Moyse pauperum usque studioso, indulgentia pauperibus concedenda 15,21-32. Exstabant primitus separatae leges de lepra vestium et domorum : illa, quod 13,45 haberetur. vestium mentio, inserta est post 13,56; haec, quod legaliter mundatus in suam dimitteretur domum, post 15,32 adscripta est. An igitur leges de lepra hominum et domorum suis primitus caruere clausulis? Habebant sane, sed illae 15,54-57 in unam confusae voceque vestium v. 55 auctae, legis collectitiae Lev. 13 sq. communem effecere clausulam. Huius legis insignis est $ymmetria, Singulae paragraphi similibus formulis ordiuntur : v. 9, mm 5» ans, v. 29. 38 mm c». VN TN V'NT, v. h0 3532* 02 vw. In subdivisionibus porro primae paragraphi nomen personae postponitur vel omnino supprimitur, hac ratione : v. 9 73: DTN2 nmm c2 nvgsw; v. 48. 95 mm *» v2. Argumentum fere producitur vocibus BN' aut *2*. -— T. 1,38; Avesta, Iescht Sade 49), oeccurritque etiamnum 1n regionibus orientis. Constat maculis albis nitentibus, quae usquequaque extenduntur. Haee lepra proprie eadem est, sive prorumpat 1n parte cutis capillata sive in non capillata. Tamen auctor distinguit, et v. 2-28 agit de ea lepra in cute non capillata prorumpente, eiusque in variis adiunctis symptomata describit; dein v. 29-37 de eadem in cute ca - pillata efflorescente; additque v. 38 sq. et 40-43 alia duo eruptionum genera plerumque innocua.
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… Under the Mosaic law the woman who had given birth remained subject to a legal impurity, which prevented her from entering the temple (Lev. 12:2-4) for a period of 40 days, if it was a male child, and of 80 if it was a female; after these had passed, she had to present herself to the priest and carry out the rite of "purification." …
There is no obligation in the Tōrāh to present human firstborn at the Temple for redemption; this practice prevailed after the exile (Neh. 10:36); and advantage was taken of the visit to the Temple that the mother had to make (Lev. 12:2-8), for the other law of purification. …
Forty days after Jesus' birth, M. presents herself at the Temple for the rite of purification (Lev. 12, 2-8) and of the redemption of Jesus in obedience to the law on firstborns (Ex. 13, 2.11-16). Although the miraculous nature of her childbirth exempted M. from the common obligations, she, …
… thanksgiving, for the expiation of sins, for purification from legal uncleanness, for the healing of diseases, especially from leprosy, etc. Even firstborn children had to be the object of oblations at the Temple, later redeemed with another kind of offering (Lev. 12, 2-8).
Purification (Candlemas), Feast of the
biblical narrative (Lk. 2:22 ff.), that the Most Holy Mary brought Jesus, 40 days after his birth, to the Temple of Jerusalem, to redeem him according to the Law (Lev. 12:2 ff., and Num. 18:15 ff.), meeting on this occasion the old Simeon, who foretold the glory of the Son and the sorrows of the Mother. …
… A person can become impure for physical reasons (leprosy: Lev. 13:3; Num. 5:2), for natural necessities (childbirth: Lev. 12:2-5), independent of his will (ibid. 15:25) or through necessary and undesired contacts (e.g., with a dead person: Num. 6:7; 9:6). Certain animals are impure by nature (Lev. 11:10 ff.). …
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Circumcision (From Lat. circumcisio, «cutting around»; Gr. περιτομή; Heb. Milāh)
… precept of circumcision was implicitly recalled by Moses in the institution of the Passover on the eve of the departure from Egypt, as a necessary condition for eating the paschal lamb (Ex. 12:44, 48), and then expressly in the Sinaitic legislation (Lev. 12:3; cf. Jn. 7:22).
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29, 13-36). Other sacrifices of lambs were enjoined on the purified woman after childbirth (Lev. 12, 6-8) and on the man healed of leprosy (Lev. 14, 16-24: two lambs and a ewe lamb). …
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… incense, the psalms that the priests sang on the individual days of the week (7 chapters). l) Middāth "measurements" (of the Temple mount; walls and courts): the hall of the sanhedrin (5 chapters). m) Qinnim "nests" of birds: the offering of two doves in Lev. 12, 8; furthermore: Lev. 15, 14 f.; 5, 7; 14, 22 (chapters).
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.